Shilpa's royal curtsy draws Indian frowns

NEW DELHI, March 14 (UPI) -- Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty caused furrowed brows in the Indian diplomatic corps when she curtsied deeply before Queen Elizabeth while in London.

"An Indian woman in a sari should never curtsy -- a nod and a namaste are enough," a senior Indian diplomat told the Kolkata (India) Telegraph.

Another Indian diplomat said, "Indian women are not supposed to curtsy when meeting members of the royal family. Shilpa must have been given the wrong advice."

But she was cut some slack by Indian historian Kusoom Vadgama, who said she didn't mind "too much" because the queen has been "very nice" to India on many occasions.

"But I would have minded if she had curtsied to, say, Camilla," she said referring to Prince Charles' second wife.

Or, Shetty may not have known that she could curtsy if she wanted but wasn't required, the Telegraph said.

For the record, Shetty wasn't wearing a sari but a purple velvet, embroidered sherwani when she was presented to the queen Tuesday at Westminster Abbey during the Commonwealth Day celebration, the newspaper reported.

A namaste is the greeting in which one holds his or her hands together at the heart and bows slightly while saying the word, "namaste."